Motorola Moto G 5G Plus

Motorola seems to keep releasing new models this year, creating quite the varied lineup of options. While some reviewers criticized the sheer number of releases, how does the new Motorola Moto G 5G stack up?

Design

Motorola opted for a plastic shell to the disappointment of most reviewers. However, the design of the blue plastic back-plate lessens the blow, adding textured flare underneath the clear backing.

On an odd note, reviewers had a problem with the SIM tray design. In their words, it took several minutes and attempts to get the SIM card to stay in the tray before closing it.

Otherwise, there was little said — either good or bad — about the phone’s design.

Display

The phone’s 6.7-inch screen offers a lot of space in a slightly different way. The phone is taller than it is wide so while it may be a little different when it comes to watching media a lot of reviewers said the length of the phone was nice for reaching most of the display with a thumb and holding the phone in one hand.

The fact that it’s not OLED but LCD instead is somewhat negated with the 90Hz refresh rate making it smooth and fast even if it’s not the sharpest display.

Performance

The Motorola Moto G 5G is reliable and smooth. It doesn’t have the fastest processor available, but reviewers said that it wasn’t necessary. The fact that it supports 5G seems irrelevant now unless you live in one of the limited markets already supporting the recent technology. But it is an effective way to future-proof a phone in 2020.

Software & Storage

Android 10 is standard for new phones, but reviewers loved Motorola’s subtle tweaks to the software, such as shortcuts to apps and disabling notifications and phone calls while gaming. It also offers 64-128GB of storage space, but if that isn’t enough a MicroSD slot makes expanding storage space simple.

Cameras

The 48MP rear-facing lens delivers decent quality images but reviewers said there was some struggle when it came to unusual lighting, either by not having enough or having too much. On bright sunny days there may be lens flare and saturation issues. You’ll also find an 8MP ultra-wide lens for extended shots as well as a 5MP macro lens and a 2MP depth sensor.

The cameras have several modes including portrait and night mode.

While the phone supports recording 4K video, reviewers mentioned that when stability control is on there is some loss in detail.

Battery Life

Running full tilt with 90 minutes of gameplay, 4 hours of regular use, and multitasking the Motorola Moto G 5G pulled an astonishing 15 hours of activity according to reviewer testing reports. That’s plenty of battery life — especially if you were to tailor things down a bit in terms of screen brightness and the number of apps open at a given time. At that point, you may find that your phone will outlast your workday or a weekend media binge.

Audio

Reviews about the phone’s audio are mixed. Some said the one speaker located at the bottom of the phone was tinny or flat. Other reviewers raved about how loud the sound could get. It seems it’s up to personal preference. But most importantly perhaps, if you don’t like the speaker, the phone has a headphone jack so you can use your favorite headphones.

Specs at a Glance

• Plastic chassis
• 6.7-inch LCD display
• 2.4 GHz Qualcomm SDM765 Snapdragon 765G processor
• 4 – 6GB of RAM
• Android 10
• 64 – 128GB of onboard storage MicroSD slot for expansion
• 48MP rear-facing lens, 5MP macro lens, 2MP depth sensor, and 16MP selfie camera
• 5000mAh battery

Bottom Line

The Motorola Moto G 5G seems to check all the right boxes when it comes to being dependable and functional. It’s not an overpowered beast of a phone but it doesn’t have to be. Somehow, Motorola has found the sweet spot when it comes to performance and value for a reasonable price. Overall, the comments made about the phone were positive while the negatives only sounded nit-picking at best.

Pocket Lint says, “That’s the thing about this Moto G. It’s not really the 5G part that’s the biggest sell, despite it being in its name. It’s just how well it sits with its features across the board.”

Trusted Reviews comments, “You’re a getting an Android phone that easily matches handsets that cost twice the price. Performance is great, the software is clean and the screen is bright and fast. It charges up quickly and lasts for ages and it even takes pretty good photos. Add to that 5G and the new Moto G easily earns a place as one of 2020’s best value smartphones.”

Tech Radar states, “The Moto G 5G Plus is a good all-rounder with a better chipset, battery life and screen quality than many other devices at its price point.”